Packing cotton wool for dressing purposes



May 27, 1930. A. LEHMANN 1,760,419

PACKING COTTON WOOL FOR DRESSING PURPOSES File D8 10, 1927 3 Sheets-Sheet l s lNl/ENfOR- y 1930- A. LEHMANN 1,760,419 v PACKING COTTON WOOL FOR DRESSING PURPOSES Filed Dec 10, 1927 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 May 27, 1930. A. LEHMANN PACKING COTTON WOOL FOR DRESSING PURPOSES 5 Sheets-Sheet 3 Filed Dec. 10, 1927 /NVE'NTOR: 62415;; @7 I: I I

3 Patented May 27, 1930 1,76%,419:

, UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE ANTON LEHMANN, OF FLAWIL, SWITZERLAND PACKING COTTON WOOL FOR DRESSING PURPOSES Application filed December 10, 1927, Serial 110.23%,159, and in Switzerland December 11, 1928.

r The packages: of cotton wool for dressing to take some of the cotton wool out of the purposes according to the present invention bag the latter is opened at one end and the consist of a strip of cotton wool inserted cotton wool pulled out. in zig-zagfashion by mechanical means into As the strip of cotton wool is mechanically and enclosed in an envelope. The package folded in zig-zag fashion the strip of cotton is produced by a method and a machine for wool can be more compressed than if the cotinserting the cotton wool strips in zig-Zag ton wool is inserted by hand, and the folding layers into the packages, for instance into is more regular so that the same quantity of paper bags. According to the method a cotton wool takes up a smaller space. Fur:

1 strip of cotton wool is fedlongitudinally and thermore owing to the pronounced folding, 50 horizontally into a package placed horizonwhich cannot be made equally well by hand tally and is simultaneously moved up and the cotton wool pulled out in excess may be down transverse to the feeding direction so easily pushed back into the bag 2.8 as it can that it is placed in vertical zig-zag layers readily be folded up again.

5 into the package. This may beperformed To the strip of cotton wool 29 which has 05 by means of a machine providedwith a dethe same Width as the bag28 9) a step Vice for effecting the horizontal positive feed by step feed motion inthe longitudinal and motion of the strips of cottonwool, the dehorizontal direction into a guide 25 ofthe vice being moved up and down transverse to package is imparted by the rollers 13 and the direction in which the strip of cotton wool 14 which are positively driven in the direc 70 is fed. tion of the arrows. The rollers 13 and 1 1 The accolnpanylng drawings serve for on are adapted to be simultaneously moved in plaining the lnventlon. In the drawings: the directlon of the arrow y and opposite Fig. 1 shows in a longitudinal section a thereto,i. e. up and down transverse to. the

. package containing cotton wool for dressfeed direction. In the polnts in which the 75 ing purposes, 1 r up and down movement of the rollers 13 and F ig. 2 is aperspective View of the pack- 14 changes 1ts dlrection the feed motion age, r 1 is interrupted for a short time. Thereby the Figs. 3-8 show 1n a diagrammatic manner strip 29 of cotton wool is placedin vertically several stages ofcarrylng out the method, folded layers in the horizontal dlrectlon into so Fig. 9shows in a more technlcal way the the guide 25 for the bags as is shown in Fig. manner in whlch the method is carried into 9. The feed motion may be obtainechby effect, other mechanical elements instead of by roll- Fig. 10 is a side elevation of a construcers, for instance by pulling or pushing mechtional example of the machine, anisms. Further the up and down move Fig. 11 is a section along line XL-Xl in ment transverse to the feed direction may be Fig. 10, obtained in any manner, for instance by lift- Fig. 12 is a plan view, ing rods, cams and the like. Fig. 13 isa section alongline XIIIXIII The method shallnow be explained with .40 in Fig. 10, reference to Figs. 3-8. 3 Fig. 14 shows a detail-on a larger scale and First of all the strip of cotton wool 29 is in anend view and fed by any suitable meanshorizontally and Fig. 15 is a vertical section of the detail. in its longitudinal direction (see arrow) into Referring now to Figs. 1 and 2 28 denotes the guide 25 for the packing whereby the 4 anenvelope or bag made of paper or the like, front end 31 of the strip rests on the bottom which is preferably closed on oneend before of the guide-25 as is shown in Fig. 3. If now the contents are inserted. The cotton wool the feed device moves in the upward direcor Wad-ding 29 for dressing purposes is metion as is indicated by the arrow inFig. 4 the chanica-lly inserted in zig-zag fashion and the front portion 82 of the strip ofcotton wool 50 other end of the bag is then closed. In order occupies the position shown in Fig; 4. When the latter is reached the feed motion is interrupted for a short time and the transverse movement is reversed whereby a good folding 33 is obtained as is shown in Fig. and the soft cotton wool is not squeezed into the widthwise direction. The transverse motion then takes place until the strip of cotton wool after having formed the vertical layer 3 1, abuts at 35 at the bottom of the guide, whereupon the feed mechanism is rendered inoperative for a short time so that also in this case a normal fold is generated at 35 as is illustrated in Fig. 7. Thereupon the Vertical upward movement of the feed device occurs again, whereby a fresh layer 36 is formed and this action continues until after the whole guide is filled with vertical layers of cotton wool arranged in zig-zag fashion which are then pushed into thebag 28 which is then closed.

In the-constructional example of the machine illustrated in Figs. -15 1 denotes the frame in which the driving shaft 2 is mounted. The latter carries a disk 3 on which an eccentric crank pin 4 is adjustably arranged. Vith the crank pin 1 a connecting rod 5 cooperates which with its other end is connected to a traverse Grigidly fixed atboth ends to vertical rods 7 longitudinally displaceable in guide bearings 8 of the machine frame 1. On the top of each rod 7 a'bearing frame 9 is arranged. Each bearing frame comprises two ball bearings 10 arranged one above the other, the upper ball bearingslO being pressed in the downward direction by springs 11. The bearing frames thus take part in the up and down movement of the rods 7. In the lower ball bearings 10 the shaft 12 of a lower feed roller 13 is mounted and in the upper ball bearings 10 the shaft 16 of an upper feed roller 14-. Both rollers are operatively connected by means of spur gear wheels 15 situated on both ends of the rollers. Both ends of the shaft 12 of the feed roller 13 extend beyond the bearings 10 and to both ends ratchet wheels 17 are fixed with which two spring loaded pawls 18 cooperate, clearance being provided between the pawls 18 and the teeth of the ratchet wheels 17. The pawls 18 are rotatable on pins 19 fixed to gear wheels 20 freely rotatable one on each end of the shaft 12. Each of the wheels 20 meshes with a toothed rack 21 each of which is arranged beside and outside of the other bearing frame 9 in such a manner that the teeth of both toothed racks point towards the vertical centre plane passing through the shafts 16 and 12 as shown in Fig. 14.

Thereby it is attained that on raising the bearing frame 9 the gear wheels 20 turn on the shaft 12 whereby the pawls 18 on one ratchet wheel give way owing to the springs. Thus 011 one side of the feed mechanism no turning of the shaft 12 by the gear wheel 20 occurs, however, on the other side of the feed mechanism the pawls cooperate with the ratchet wheel and turn the shaft 12. (in lowering the bearing frame 9 the pawls become operative on the opposite side of the feed mechanism so that also during this lowering movement the same movement of the rollers 14 and 15 indicated by the arrows w in Fig. 9 occurs.

On reversing the lifting or lowering movement a short stopping of the turning movement of the rollers 14: and 15 occurs on account of the play provided with the pawls.

At the rear of the feed rollers 14 and 15 a horizontal table 22 is provided on the frame 1 which may be adjusted in height by means of a spur gear drive 23 and screw threaded spindles 24L. On the table three horizontally disposed guide bushes 25 of rectangular cross-section are arranged which are provided on the top with a slot 26 and with a tapering rear end 27. The envelopes 28, for instance paper bags, are pushed over the taporing ends 27.

The operation of the above described machine is as follows:

Strips 29 of cotton wool, for instance three strips one beside the other as is shown in Fig. 12, are positively pushed from one side horizontally between the feed rollers 13 and 14 into the guides 25 for the packages. When the machine works the rollers 13, 14 rotate in the direction of the arrows w (Fig. 9) and feed thus the strips 29 longitudinally through the guides 25 towards the packages 28. The rollers 13 and 1 1 further carry out an up and down or reciprocating movement in the direction of the arrow y and opposite thereto and thereby the strips are placed in vertical layers 30 in zig-zag fashion and get gradually in this form along the channels and the tapered ends 27 into the bags 28. The number of guides 25 is not limited to that shown. They may also be exchangeable against others of a different size, which also necessitates a corresponding adjustment of the stroke of the crank pin 4. Obviously instead of the pawl and ratchet mechanism any other unidirectional mechanism, for instance a free wheel clutch, may be provided.

I claim:

1. A method of inserting astrip of cotton wool into envelopes which consists in positively pushing a strip of cotton wool longitudinally and horizontally into a horizontally disposed packing envelope and simultaneous- 1y moving said strip up and down to produce Vertical layers arranged in zig-zag fashion and inserted in said envelope by the feed motion and interrupting said feed motion for a short time in the dead centers of said up and down motion.

2. A machine for inserting strips of cotton wool into envelopes, comprising in combination, a feed mechanism adapted to positively feed a strip of cotton Wool endwise and intermittently into an envelope, and means adapted to impart to said feed mechanism a reciprocating movement transverse tosaid feed motion for folding said strip in zig-zag fashion on being inserted into the envelope, said feed movement being interrupted for a short time when said transverse movement changes its direction.

3. A machine fol-inserting strips of cotton v wool into envelopes, comprising in combination,a'pair of positively driven rollers feeding the strip between said rollers in the longitudinal and horizontal direction, a frame a in Which said rollers are mounted, toothed racks cooperating with said frame, and means to reciprocate said frame along said toothed racks in the vertical direction for ondwise feeding and folding said stripvertically in zig-zag fashion.

4;. A machine for inserting strips of cotton Wool into envelopes, comprising in combination, a pair of positively driven rollers feeding the strip between said rollers in the longitudinal and horizontal direction, shafts on which said rollers are mounted, a bearing frame for said shafts, a toothed Wheel loosely mounted on each of said shafts, a unidirectional driving mechanism interposed between each toothed WlIGQl and its shaft, two

vertically disposed stationary toothed racks inmesh With said toothed Wheels, and means to reciprocate said bearing frame in the ver tical direction along said toothed racks for 15 endWise feeding and folding said strip vertically in zig-zag fashion.

A machine for inserting strips of cotton Wooliinto envelopes, comprising in combination, a pair of positively driven rollers feedin the stri between said rollers in thelon gitudinal andhorizontal direction, shafts on Which said rollers are mounted, a bearing frame for said shafts, a toothed Wheel loosely mounted on each of said shafts, ratchet Wheels fixed on said shafts, paWls cooperating with said ratchet Wheels and pivoted on said gear Wheels, two vertically disposed stationary toothed racks in mesh With said toothed Wheels, and means to reciprocate 0 said bearing frame in the vertical direction along said toothedracks for endwise feeding and folding said strip vertically in zig-zag fashion.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification.

ANTON LEHMANN. 

